Top GKToday’s News Headlines-28 March 2020

March 28, 2020

Here are Top GKToday’s News Headlines for 28 March, 2020

Army Chief General MM Naravane launches Operation Namaste – Indian Army’s anti-COVID-19 drive
Facebook launches Corona Helpdesk Chatbot on Messenger alongwith Ministry of Health and MyGov
Restrictions on domestic flights extended till April 14
UP CM Yogi Adityanath sets up “Team-11” comprising of as many inter-departmental committees to fight the coronavirus spread
Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust donates Rs 51 crore to Maharashtra Chief Minister’s Relief Fund to fight the COVID-19 outbreak
Rajyogini Dadi Janki, the chief of Brahmakumaris Sansthan, dies at 104 in Mount Abu, Rajasthan
Renowned artist & architect Satish Gujral dies at 94; was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 1999
Beni Prasad Verma, a founding member of the Samajwadi Party and former Union minister, dies at 80 in Lucknow
Noted Fisheries scientist and Vice Chancellor of Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) Dr A. Ramachandran dies in Kochi at the age of 61

RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das announces decisions of Monetary Policy Committee (MPC)
Policy repo rate cut by 75 basis points to 4.4% to deal with the hardship caused due to the outbreak of COVID-19
Reverse repo rate reduced 90 basis points to 4%
Cash reserve ratio (CRR) of all banks reduced by 100 basis points to 3% with effect from March 28 for 1 year
Minimum daily CRR balance requirement reduced from 90% to 80%, a one-time dispensation up to June 2020
Banks allowed three-month moratorium on EMI (equated monthly instalment) payments on all term loans

Govt exempts procurement agencies, mandis, farming operations, farm workers from lockdown rules
Govt. sells its entire 74.5% stake in state-owned power company THDC India Ltd (THDCIL) to NTPC for Rs 7,500 crore
Govt. sells 100% stake in state-owned power company NEEPCO (North Eastern Electric Power Corp) for Rs 4,000 crore to PSU NTPC
Govt. sells 66.67% stake in Kamrajar Port Ltd to Chennai Port Trust for Rs 2,383 crore
Japanese government funding agency JICA signs 3 agreements totalling Rs 15,295 crore with the Indian government for three mega rail infrastructure projects
Coronavirus impact: ICRA forecasts –4.5% growth rate for India’s GDP in April-June 2020 quarter; 2% in 2020-21
Moody’s Investor Service (Moody’s) estimates 2.5% growth rate for the Indian economy in calendar year 2020 (CY20), 5.8% in CY21
SC allows sale of BS IV compliant vehicles for 10 days, barring in Delhi-NCR, after coronavirus lockdown is lifted
Country’s foreign exchange reserves declined USD 11.98 billion to USD 469.909 billion in the week to March 20

US Space Force launches Lockheed Martin Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite (a military communication satellite) aboard an Atlas V551 rocket from Cape Canaveral in Florida
Moody’s estimates global economic growth at –0.5% in calendar year 2020 (CY20), 3.2% growth in CY21
Actor Mark Blum dies of complications from COVID-19 in US at the age of 69
Britain: Prime Minister Boris Johnson (55), Health Secretary Matt Hancock (41) test positive for coronavirus